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A new Action Plan on promoting and protecting the rights of LGBTI community discussed by the Advisory and Coordination Group

The Advisory and Coordination Group for the rights of the LGBTI community met on 25 July in Pristina to coordinate activities performed by institutions and civil society and to adopt a plan to strengthen the protection and fulfilment of the rights of the LGBTI community. The meeting was organised in cooperation with the Office of Good Governance, the Prime Minister’s Office, NGOs Centre for Equality and Liberty and Center for Social Group Development.


 

During the morning session the members of the group discussed the main achievements and challenges of the functioning of the Advisory Group and the challenges that the LGBTI community is facing. The afternoon session focused on the way ahead on developing the new Action Plan on promoting and protecting the rights of LGBTI community for the period 2024 – 2026. 


 

This activity is supported by the “Combating discrimination and hatred” action, implemented within the joint programme of the European Union and the Council of Europe “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye”, running from January 2023 until December 2026.

PRISTINA 28/07/2023
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The action “Combating discrimination and hatred” is designed to bring forward the reforms of the human rights mechanisms at central and local levels. It further supports Kosovo*'s alignment with European standards on anti-discrimination, notably those from the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) and to follow up on the latest EU report on Kosovo recommendations in the area of fundamental rights.

The action builds on the results of the  previous action on “Promotion of diversity and equality in Kosovo”, and is implemented within the joint programme of the European Union and the Council of Europe “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye”, running from January  2023 until December 2026.

What is the goal(s) and objective(s) of the action?

The action "Combating discrimination and hatred" aims to strengthen and support the public institutions and local actors in the field of fighting discrimination, and assist beneficiaries in the ongoing reforms in combating discrimination and hate speech, as well as protection of vulnerable groups.
The action is also raising awareness among the general population about the dangers of hate speech and how to fight it.

Who benefits from the action?

Main beneficiaries and end beneficiaries of the action are Office for Good Governance – Prime Minister’s Office; Ombudsperson Institution; Agency for Free Legal Aid; Agency for Civil Registration; Local communities/governments; universities and secondary schools; LGBTI population; minority population; Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in the area of anti-discrimination and general public.

How does the action work?

The action is designed along three main components:

  • in the field of anti-discrimination, the Office for Good Governance and the Ombudsperson Institution  will be supported in implementing the anti-discrimination framework;
  • in the field of combating hate speech and hate crimes, notably against ethnic and sexual minorities in reinforcing the institutional and CSO responses to hatred (e.g. hate incidents protocols; data collection; investigations; detecting and combating bullying as a form of hatred);
  • raising awareness and reaching out to the public at the local level to promote tolerance and mutual understanding and fostering equality.
What do we expect to achieve?

Relevant public institutions and other non-state stakeholders in Kosovo effectively implement legal and policy reforms on anti-discrimination/ hate crime/ hate speech/ racism enabling further protection of vulnerable groups and sexual minorities in line with European standards. In this context the awareness of the people living in Kosovo will be raised regarding fight against discrimination and promoting an equal and diverse society.

What is the budget of the action?

The total budget of the action is 450.000 Euros.

The budget allocated to the overall Horizontal Facility programme amounts to ca. 41 Million EUR (85% funded by the European Union, 15% by the Council of Europe).

About Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye

The “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” is a joint initiative of the European Union and the Council of Europe that enables the Western Balkans Beneficiaries and Türkiye to meet their reform agendas in the fields of human rights, rule of law and democracy and to comply with the European standards, which is also a priority for the EU enlargement process.

* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence".


 

ACTION AT A GLANCE

Duration: January 2023 - December 2026 (48 months)

Beneficiaries:

  • Citizens and people living in Kosovo
  • Public authorities active in preventing and combating discrimination
  • Local authorities
  • Civil society organisations and
  • Youth engaged in promoting and protecting human rights

Funding: European Union and Council of Europe

Budget: 450,000 Euros 

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PROJECT TEAM

Betim Zllanoga, Senior Project Officer, Pristina

Lindita Hoti-Shala, Project Assistant, Pristina

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